Ice Spice Siblings: Meet Joey Gaston and the Family the Bronx Rapper Fiercely Protects

She turned the Bronx into a global phenomenon. Ice Spice, born Isis Naija Gaston, went from rapping into her iPhone Notes app to landing top-ten Billboard hits, collaborating with Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj, and becoming one of the most talked-about voices in hip-hop.

But behind all the orange curls and viral moments is a family story that most fans have barely scratched the surface of.

Ice Spice has five younger half-siblings, three sisters from her mother’s side, as well as another sister and one brother from her father’s side. One of those siblings is already making national headlines in his own right. Another has sparked an internet frenzy after a photo went viral.

So who exactly are Ice Spice’s siblings, and what do we actually know about the family she has fought so hard to protect?

A Bronx Upbringing That Shaped Everything

Before getting into the siblings, you have to understand the household they all came from.

Ice Spice was born to Joseph Gaston and Charina Almanzar. Her parents met at a McDonald’s when Charina was a teenager and had her when she was 17. They separated two years later but remained in the same neighbourhood.

That detail matters more than it might seem. Two parents living within walking distance of each other after a split, a teenage mother figuring it out, a father with underground rap dreams. Ice Spice didn’t just grow up in the Bronx. She grew up in the middle of all of that.

Her father inspired her to pursue music. She told PAPER, “He definitely inspired me to want to record. I remember being in the studio with him. I was a toddler, probably. And I remember little flashes. Of course, not every detail, but small things like that being shown to you at such a young age make an impression on you. Subconsciously, I ended up becoming an artist because I saw my father be one first.”

And while she was soaking all of that in, she was also quietly becoming the person her siblings looked up to.

Joey Gaston: The Brother Who Is Building His Own Legend

Of all Ice Spice’s siblings, one name has broken through into the public spotlight in a major way: Joey Gaston.

Joey was born on 19 June 2007 in New York. He is a rising footballer, currently playing as the starting quarterback for Iona Preparatory High School in New Rochelle, New York. He is also a signed model, and at an age when most teenagers are figuring out their next move, Joey is already juggling both.

On the football field, he runs a 4.5 40-yard dash and is ranked top 20 in the state for passing yards and total yards, with dreams of playing on a D1 team and eventually getting drafted into the NFL.

The modelling side of the story is just as fascinating. He always had a passion for taking photos, often snapping selfies and pictures of teammates on bus rides to football games. His teammates would tease him for trying too hard, but a few months later, Next Model Management discovered his Instagram photos and offered him a contract.

As for what it’s like being the little brother of one of rap’s biggest stars? Joey has made his position very clear. He told GQ, “I don’t look at her as Ice Spice. I look at her as Isis, my older sister. Everyone still knows me as Joey Gaston. At school and all of that, I made my own name. They know me as the quarterback.”

The rivals, though, haven’t always made it so easy. During one playoff game, Joey looked up at the opposing student section to find them all wearing orange wigs, mimicking his sister’s signature hairstyle. His team ended up blowing them out 42-7, and by the second half, the wigs were coming off.

That’s the kind of story that tells you everything about who Joey Gaston is. He doesn’t hide from his sister’s fame. He uses it as fuel.

Ice Spice’s Sisters: Protected, Private, and Missed

Beyond Joey, the rest of Ice Spice siblings have been deliberately kept away from the public eye, and the rapper has been very open about why.

Ice Spice told The Cut that her fame has actually worked in her siblings’ favour socially. “Their friends and classmates treat them really well because they know they are my sister, and I love that for them. There’s been a point where they’ve been bullied, but they don’t gotta deal with that. Like, now they GOATed.”

That line carries weight. Ice Spice isn’t just their famous older sister. She was their protector long before any of this happened.

But fame has come with a cost she didn’t fully anticipate. During an Apple Music interview in July 2023, she admitted, “My sisters miss me so bad.” She explained, “It is hard to maintain a relationship with somebody you grew up with and then try to travel the whole world and please so many other people. It’s like, you still gotta pay attention to them. So, it’s a lot.”

She added something that not many artists would say out loud. She said, “I appreciate that they even miss me because some people’s siblings don’t care about them.”

That’s not a superstar talking. That’s a big sister who grew up fast, carrying everyone with her.

What About “Sister Kay”?

If you’ve been searching for Ice Spice’s sister Kay online, you’ve likely come across TikTok videos, fan theories, and Instagram tags pointing to a girl named Kay connected to Ice Spice’s family. Here’s what the record actually shows.

On 8 August 2023, a picture of Ice Spice with a mystery girl went viral online, leading fans to believe they had found her sister. In the photo, the American rapper is posing with her tongue out, and the mystery girl, who also has orange hair like Ice Spice, is pouting.

Fans searched for the mystery girl’s name and Instagram handle, but no concrete evidence emerged to confirm she was one of Ice Spice’s siblings.

The “sister Kay” name circulating online originates from unverified TikTok content and fan speculation, not from Ice Spice or anyone from her family. As of now, none of her sisters has been publicly named or confirmed by the rapper herself. Until Ice Spice or her family confirms otherwise, “sister Kay” remains a rumour, not a fact.

The Family Behind the Fame

What makes the Ice Spice siblings’ story genuinely compelling isn’t just the viral moments or Joey’s football headlines. It’s the picture it paints of a woman who became a star without leaving her family behind, even when the demands of that star status made it harder than she expected.

In an Apple Music interview, Ice Spice said, “I’m very grateful that I have so many siblings. I feel like I learned a lot of things at home that apply to real life now.”

Joey echoed the mutual support from his side, telling Complex, “She created a path that makes me want to work harder. It’s like, damn, I see what she’s doing now, and it makes me want to do it even more. She’s going to keep doing what she’s doing; we’re going to love each other and give each other support 100% of the way.”

Two kids from the Bronx. One with a microphone, one with a football. Both are building something.

The rest of the siblings may stay out of the spotlight for now, exactly the way Ice Spice wants it. But make no mistake, this is a family that clearly shaped who she is, long before the world knew her name.